Cosmoduck: 001101100 Things to Do in Space Dock
by VAPX007
Summary: Ep 02: DWD X ST AU. Hmm ... The title seems fairly self explanatory here ... Oh, this is the staple Darkwing Duck characters as the crew on a Star Ship. I love these characters and I love the Star Trek universe so I hope you enjoy it too!
1. The Set Up

**_TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO DUCK HAS GONE BEFORE ..._**

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><p><em><span>Disclaimer:<span> I do not own Star Trek, it owns me. I am innocent of inventing these characters, Disney did it unless specifically stated _otherwise_. However I do plead guilty of conspiring to put them in charge of a starship._

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><p><em>U.S.S. St Canard Crew Manifest:<em>

_**Darkwing Duck** - Captain (Come on, was there even a doubt?)_  
><em>Lieutenant Commander <strong>Launchpad<strong> **McQuack** - Ship's Councillor_  
><em>Lieutenant <em>Commander <em>**Gosalyn Mallard**-Waddlemire - Science Operations ... scanning._  
><em>Commander <strong>Morgana<strong> Mallard-**Macawber** - Operations/First Officer_  
><em>Lieutenant Commander <strong>Megavolt<strong> - Chief Engineer juiced up_  
><em>Lieutenant <strong>Negaduck<strong> - Chief of Security, phaser set to kill_  
><em>Lieutenant <strong>Liquidator<strong> - Hailing Frequencies Open_  
><em>Lieutenant <strong>Quackerjack<strong> - Pilot off course, of course_  
><em><strong>Doctor Reginald Bushroot<strong> - Mission Medical.  
><em>

_Other cast members:_

_Lieutenant **Sara Bellum** - Assistant Engineer_

_Introducing Ensign ? ? from Star Trek: The Original Series_

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><p><strong>Episode Two: 001101100 Things to Do While Space Docked<strong>

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><p><strong>Chapter One: The Set Up<strong>

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><p><em>"Captains log. Space dock means people. Your sort of people, with similar ideas and views on the universe ..."<em>

"No, I am not interested!"  
>"Don't you think it's about time that we stop hiding our feelings for one another?"<br>"I outrank you, ensign! Dismissed."

_"Ahem. Captain's log. Space dock means people. People that never quite see eye to eye, people that tend to squabble in close quarters, people who you thought you'd escaped from when you joined aboard what they laughingly call a 'strategically balanced, culture tested star ship'."_

Darkwing jumped up the stairs and leaned on the console beside Gosalyn. "Mind letting me in on what that was all about, Lieutenant Commander?"  
>She clenched her beak. "I am a career officer."<br>"Ah." He nodded in understanding, "and Ensign Cho Barker isn't exactly your type."  
>"Uch, yeah. How come you can guess so easily but I have to practically phaser him off me?"<br>Darkwing shrugged. "You're only twenty seven. I have a few more years of experience on you."

"We don't have much to do right now while the ship's in dock, why don't you take some time off, lieutenant commander?"  
>"Aw, great, and then where will I hide from Ensign Cho Barker?"<br>"Hide?" Darkwing snorted in disapproval, "since when do young women in this era need to hide?"  
>"What do you suggest, captain?"<br>"The way I survive shore leave is to think of it as another mission. Except on this particular mission you don't have to give any reports and you get to choose more recreational activities instead."  
>Gosalyn's face cleared as she thought about this one. "Brilliant! Thanks, captain!" She raced to the turbo lift. "You're the best!"<br>Darkwing blushed as the doors closed.

* * *

><p>The turbo lift doors opened and Liquidator swished out.<p>

"Hey, Bud."

He turned to the dark-haired engineering officer crossing his path and she batted her lashes at him.

"You got shore leave plans?"  
>Liquidator grinned at her, "my phaser is set to thrill." He chortled. "The more the merrier?"<br>"Uh ..." She pursed her beak, "wouldn't it be a bit crowded already without me?"  
>"Oh, flattery will get you everywhere, Sara." He grinned at her. "There's always room for you and Bushy."<br>Sara frowned. "We're not doing that anymore. There wasn't anything between us. I mean ... I'm a duck and sure he's sweet but half the time he talks in inane gibberish."  
>"That's not gibberish. Gibbers do not speak like that." Liquidator lectured her.<br>"I know, I'm sorry, I meant, well ... The last time I went to see him with a plasma scorch he just kept going on about occupational health and how there's only one of me and ... sometimes I don't think he even realises who he's talking to but it's always about work or his bio-what-sits." She shook her head.

"I think he should find himself a nice Phylosian to settle down with." She started walking away and called back over her shoulder. "I might come, Licky, if I'm not too busy."

Liquidator stood there for a moment alone in the corridor, feeling very unfortunate for his friend. "And the Phylosian I set him up with said he should try finding himself a nice duck."  
>The intercom on the belt of his blue uniform bleeped. He picked it out and opened it up.<br>"Where the heck are you, Liquidator? A pocket universe?" The electronic voice sounded at him in disapproval.  
>"I am approximately three feet from your door."<br>"But you don't have any feet! Look, just get in here already! I've got places to be."

Liquidator got to the door and pressed the door plate. The locking mechanism released and the door slid open.

* * *

><p>"Talk about your sub-light-speed officers." Negaduck waved him inside.<br>"I was delayed ..." Negaduck raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms, "several times."

Negaduck's quarters were unique from anyone else's, dressed up in pictures of historical battles. Some of them were statues, forever denied that final death blow they were in the process of making. The lighting was reddish, what Negaduck insisted reminded him of the burnished sky of his home world.

"I've been trying out another style beyond realism. I've been working on this for ages, but I wanted a second opinion." He pulled the sheet off the lump standing on a platform in the centre of the room.

"Disturbing," remarked Liquidator, "you have rendered Monet's Water Lilies with a Picasso-like finish. One might even say you've killed the motif quite savagely."  
>Negaduck dropped the sheet over the bizarre three dimensional statue. "I'm glad you can appreciate it, Liquidator."<br>"What is it supposed to represent?"  
>Negaduck raised an eyebrow. " 'The Death of Impressionism'."<br>"Ah, a splendid job."  
>"Yeah, yeah, get outta here you crawler." Negaduck blushed as he pushed Liquidator with some difficulty out of his quarters.<br>"Anytime, Lieutenant." Liquidator saluted.

Negaduck stopped and grabbed up his sleepover bag before letting the door close behind him. He fell in step with Liquidator. "So are you meeting up with the boys on the station?"  
>"No, I have other business to attend to." Liquidator frowned as they headed to the turbo lift. "Besides which, the prospect of getting drunk does not appeal to me all that much for some odd reason."<br>Negaduck snorted in amusement. "Oh, please don't give me that lame excuse. I know exactly what you're going to be up to, Liquidator. Just don't expect me to rush down to the planet to back you up if things get too much for you to handle." He pointed at himself. "I'll be enjoying my hangover by then."  
>Liquidator shook his head. "My shore leave plans are infallible, Negaduck. I shall have no reason to call you."<br>"Famous last words."

They stepped into the transporter room and Liquidator got onto the transporter pad with a few other fellow crewmen. Negaduck saluted and once he saw his friend had vanished he headed off for the docking port.

* * *

><p>Gosalyn Mallard-Waddlemire walked into sickbay, determined to convince her best friend into joining her on some well-deserved shore leave.<br>"How can I help you, Lieutenant Commander?" He picked up a scanner and started taking her readings.  
>"Oh, I'm fine, Reggie. I was wondering if you'd be my away team buddy."<br>"No, thank you, I've got several sensitive experiments that require my attention."

"Come on, Reggie, there's a whole planet down below waiting for us to explore. There'll be lots of fresh air and sunlight. I know how much you love sunlight."  
>He paused, holding the scanner. "I guess a few days won't be too much if I set the environ-controls to a cycle ..." His eyes went misty as his mind grew nostalgic at the idea of soaking up real sunlight. "Sure, Gos. That's a great idea!"<br>"I know." She grinned with a happy satisfaction. "I always have great ideas."


	2. The Separation

TV Shows » StarTrek: Other » **Cosmoduck: 001101100 Things to Do in Space Dock**

Author: VAPX007

1. The Set Up2. The Separation3. The Side Issue

Rated: K+ - English - Sci-Fi/Adventure - Reviews: 4 - Published: 10-16-11 - Updated: 11-11-11

id:7468608

**Episode Two: 001101100 Things to Do While Space Docked**

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: The Separation<strong>

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><p>The engine room of the St Canard was a magnificent tribute to the wonder of technology. The warp core stood tall and straight. Blue and yellow, even powered down it was ... well, just magnificent to behold. Megavolt turned around from the last check on his pride and joy and addressed the newcomers. They were pink furless aliens dressed in shiny black jumpsuits. They looked almost like humans only their heads were a lot bigger, they were all about as short as the captain and about as skinny as Doctor Bushroot.<p>

Megavolt smiled at his visiting engineering friends. "So, which of you is 001?"  
>"I am," said the one on the left.<br>"So you must be 101?" He nodded at the one in the middle.  
>"Correct. And he is 100." He nodded at the one on the right.<br>"Good, well, hi 001, 101 and 100." Megavolt smiled at them. "I'm chief engineer lieutenant commander Megavolt, and this is my engine room!" He gestured grandly.

"So uh ..." Megavolt scratched his head reviewing them, "are your friends coming?"  
>"Friends?"<br>"Your other team members."  
>"Is only us here you with."<br>"With three digits comprising a combination of zeros and ones? Just ... I mean, only three of you?"

The Trinars looked at each other "It is our 'rank', as say you in language."

"I guess." Megavolt at last shrugged off the issue in his head.  
>They picked up their equipment. "Good, then we start get setup the Radon sweeping."<p>

"Er, uh, yes. Auxiliary controls are right over here." Megavolt gestured and led them over.

* * *

><p>Negaduck walked in through the double doors, surveying the clientele of the orbital pub for threats.<br>"What's that noise?" He looked around. "It's coming from ..." He turned his head and looked carefully at Lieutenant Quackerjack. He saw something that made his blood run cold and he stepped cautiously forward. "What the heck have you got there, Quackers?"

Quackerjack thrust the fuzzy thing in his face, making Negaduck jerk back in displeasure. "It's called a Tribble."  
>"Aren't those things illegal?" Negaduck growled down at Quackerjack. "Because they darn well should be looking like that."<br>"He's not ugly, for your information; he's cute. Don't you have cute things back in your universe?"  
>Negaduck considered the ball of fluff. "Cute is not in the Negaverse dictionary ..." He searched his memory, "you use 'cute' to describe ... children and pets ... So a Tribble's like a pet?" He frowned, recalling the pets he'd had back in the Negaverse. "Like a python or a Doberman?"<br>"Nah, he's the kind of pet that's only dangerous if you feed him. I'm not going to feed him, so he's harmless."

"Wait a moment!" Negaduck blinked, "what you just said makes no sense! Wouldn't a living creature die without food?" Negaduck shook his head and sat down, transfixed by the tiny monstrosity in his friend's hands. "What's that noise it's making? Is it in a death agony or something?"  
>"He's purring. It's therapeutic on the nerves of other life forms such as us."<br>"Alright, there's a new one on me. What is 'therapeutic'?"  
>Quackerjack placed the distasteful Tribble in Negaduck's hands. After a few moments the security chief realised the creature's purring was putting him to sleep.<p>

"That's therapeutic." Quackerjack smiled innocently at him.  
>"... I guess the fuzzy critter isn't all that bad. If you got insomnia this'd help." Negaduck grudgingly accepted the ugly mutt had its place in this universe and handed the ball of fur back to the jester pilot. "Failing that he'd make a good dust buster for the captain's ..."<p>

Behind Quackerjack Negaduck's vision caught on a familiar, extremely attractive young Bolian crossing the room and making her way to the bar. "Hell-oo, hell cat!" He stood up and left Quackerjack. "Finally: something worthwhile on this backwater space station!"

* * *

><p>"Hello, M'Aligna." Negaduck crooned from behind her. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"<br>The young Bolian turned her head to see him and grinned as he got up on the stool beside her. He looked over at the bar attendant. "I'll have what she's having."

"Why, Negaduck. It seems just like yesterday when we took on a Moropa contingent together."  
>"From the inside." He laughed as he received his drink. "It was actually three years ago. I took shore leave on Bolarus IX and ended up in a battle of epic proportions just because of a pretty face." He sighed, gazing into her eyes. "Your pretty face to be exact. I knew from the moment I first laid eyes on you that you were gonna be trouble and I was right."<p>

"Those were the good old days." She smiled back at him as he took a swig of Acamarian brandy. "So, Negaduck ... Have you got anything planned while your ship's in dock?"  
>"Why do you ask, sweetheart?" He took her hand. "Have you got something else in mind? Torturing a downed Orion pilot for information, perhaps?" He grinned at her.<br>"Perhaps." She ran her tongue across her pearly white teeth and then took a gulp of her drink. He did the same.

"The food service is terrible on this station. They're missing my favourite meal from the menu here."  
>"Huh? What would that be, M'Aligna? I can fetch someone to reprogram the replicators for you."<br>She leaned in towards him and he smelt Acamarian brandy on her breath as she spoke quietly into his ear. "It's duck soup."  
>"Oh ..." He chuckled at how easily she'd had him on, "any duck in particular?"<br>"Perhaps." She chuckled.

They finished their drinks and headed out of the pub area together.

* * *

><p>Janice Rand, Ensign-in-Training stepped into the space station's recreation area to get her lunch as she had for nearly a week but today she was seeing ducks.<p>

She walked slowly in through the room. Real live sentient ducks. Ducks that spoke English too ... she jumped as she heard a quack by her elbow ... well, mostly English. Janice felt a thrill of adventure because this was first contact and she was doing it all by herself! Sure, they were already part of the Federation, but in her few training hours at Star Fleet she had only seen one or two of this species from a distance; there certainly had never been any in her classes. So to her, this was first contact without the danger of doing something terribly wrong. Fantastic!

Janice spied an empty chair beside a colourfully dressed duck and resolved to start making friends at once.

"Hello." Janice approached the duck, making him turn back from watching the bar. "Is this seat taken?"  
>"Uh ..." He glanced back to the bar. Janice looked and saw a duck and a Bolian get off their stools and head for the exit to the right. "No, I guess he isn't coming back. Be my guest." He finally turned his attention on her and gave her a broad smile.<br>Janice sat down, smiling back at him. The earnestness in his eyes made her feel warm and welcome. Then she considered the ball of fur that was sitting on what suspiciously looked like his sandwich. "Is that a Tribble you have there?" She pointed to it.  
>"Why, yes it is."<br>"Uh, in that case should you be letting it eat your Quadrotriticale sandwich?"  
>The duck squawked, looking down. He pulled the Tribble away from the food. "Oh, no! When did my meal get here?"<br>"I don't know. I'm Janice ..."  
>"And I'm in trouble!" He squawked again and jumped up with the Tribble in his hands, running helter-skelter to the exit.<p>

"Well now." Janice's vision drifted around the room and finally back down to the Tribble-nibbled sandwich. "There I was thinking moving to a smaller ship would mean I would have less excitement. Seems like I was wrong after all."

* * *

><p>Reginald and Gosalyn found the resort they were looking for and checked in at the front desk. The architecture was ancient. The external walls all crumbly whilst the interior was done up very fashionably.<p>

Gosalyn took a deep breath of the fresh air in the half open lobby. "Oh, just now and then it does feel good to get outside." She sighed and sniffed, smelling the moisture in the air, "are you alright with it being tropical, Reggie?"  
>"Yes." He reassured her, "this is quite nice weather ... uh, so what do we do now that we're here, lieu- I mean Gosalyn?"<br>"I vote we should go get our feet wet in that hot spring they were advertising, do nothing much else for the afternoon and sunbathe."

"Sounds perfect." He smiled back at her as they went up the worn stone stairs to drop off their overnight bags.

* * *

><p>Launchpad had been busy with a sudden walk-in by Ensign Cho Barker and was now on his belated journey to the docking port. He saw the wall panel outside holodeck two was active. 'I thought everybody had left?' He stopped in front of the panel. "Computer, who is in Holodeck two?"<br>"Holodeck two is currently unoccupied."  
>"Computer, open doors."<p>

The doors slid open and a puzzled Launchpad walked into the activated holodeck. It was a lounge room with a cosy roaring fire in the hearth. "Hello?" He looked around, "are you on for a reason? Heh," he chuckled at his mistake, "this is me talking to a computer simulation. Yep, time for a holiday, LP!" He smiled to himself, shaking his head. "Computer, deactivate program."  
>"Warning: program is locked for editing by another user and cannot be terminated at this time."<br>"Computer, save progress and shut down the program."  
>"Access privileges denied: You do not have permission to modify this program."<br>Launchpad shrugged and crossed the room to the wall where the control panel lay hidden. "... I've done this so many times you'd think I was the holodeck maintenance guy."

"Launchpad?"

The ship's councillor jumped and straightened away from the control panel. He turned to the familiar sultry voice. The brown speckled feline in a satin cream slip petted the chaise for him to sit next to her.  
>"Lorraine? Gee, where'd you come from?" He crossed over and sat down beside her on the lounge.<p>

"Honey, it's been such a long time, did I not surprise you to see me come visit you?"  
>"Yeah, you sure did. I actually thought someone had forgotten to turn off their program."<br>"Not at all. Here, turn around and let me give you a massage. You've been working so hard, you deserve it."  
>"Heh," he chuckled, gratefully turning away from her, "you know I can't say no to one of your massages, Lorraine."<br>The feline slipped her fingers around his shoulders, gently kneading the muscles in his back. He closed his eyes feeling himself relax.

* * *

><p>"The scent of midnight Jasmine in the air. The melodious strains of a Vulcan harp. Earth Chinese solar lanterns to softly light our way, parting the shadows of the night that we may not fear to stumble in the darkness."<p>

"Oh, yes, Dark, it is very lovely." Morgana smiled happily at her husband, feeling the fresh night breeze pleasantly ruffling her feathers as they walked along the pathway through the botanical gardens. "But I know you. I can always tell when you're up to something and you are definitely up to something."  
>He stopped walking on her words, making her turn to him.<p>

Darkwing got down on one knee in front of her. "Morgana Mallard, I love you. Will you marry me again?"  
>"Oh, yes I most certainly will, Dark." She closed her eyes, enjoying the moment.<br>He stood back up and kissed her fingers for a time.

"Do you remember the first time I proposed?" He asked her.  
>"As I recall, we were on the run from the Orions when our cover was blown. I must say this setting is a lot more relaxing than being in that foxhole."<br>"I agree the timing was a little unfortunate but I wasn't going to let something so trivial as a few pilfering pirates interfere with my personal plans."  
>"Of course not, Dark." She smiled, "you never do."<p>

"I wanted to ask you again. Here." He gestured to the starry night and the quiet whispering garden as they moved to sit down on a random bench. "Because I love you everywhere, any time and always. Space and planet-side, in peace, boredom, excitement and tribulation."  
>Morgana grabbed him into a hug. "Oh, honey-whumpus. I love you too."<p>

* * *

><p>"Excuse us please."<p>

Gosalyn lifted her sunglasses and peered at the three visitors. They looked like human children except they were very pink and had giant heads to compare. They wore black clothes. "Perhaps could you help us? We are try to locating an item that have lost. Has you by chance seen this item?"

Gosalyn took the handheld information unit and looked at the screen. "Hang on, I can't see anything in this sunlight." She got up and ducked under the embankment of plants. "No, I've never seen anything like that. Reggie? Hey, Reggie?" She called out and he came over. She handed the unit to him.  
>"It certainly is weird looking." He mused, studying the diagram. "And you think it's down here on the planet somewhere?"<br>"We don't know."  
>"The equipment we have is-."<br>"Not the best."

"Well, we'll help you find it, won't we, Gosalyn?" Bushroot smiled at Gosalyn and handed the aliens their unit back.  
>"Yeah." Gosalyn agreed. "These deckchairs were way too comfortable anyway. Say, what are your names? I'm Gosalyn and this is Reginald."<p>

"We are 010, 111 and 000."

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><p><em>... To Be Continued ...<em>


	3. The Side Issue

**Episode Two: 001101100 Things To Do While Space Docked**

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><p><em>AN: Okay, so you know how the last chapter was chopping and changing between subplots? Well, this subplot was just too awesome to split up for timeline integrity, so I've left this chapter as one BIG chunking lot of FUN dedicated solely to:_

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><p><strong>Chapter Three: The All-Consuming Side Issue<strong>

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><p>Morgana and Darkwing were sitting in a country-style courtyard with a few other patrons, enjoying their breakfast in the fresh morning air. The chirpy sound of baroque violins mixed perfectly with the happy local morning choir of birds.<p>

"I can't help but think this is all too perfect, Dark." Morgana mentioned as they sipped tea over their empty plates. "I've got the feeling that something's going to happen while my back is turned. It's giving me the shivers."  
>"No way, Morgana!" Darkwing replied grandly. "The St. Canard's safely tucked away in space dock. What could possibly happen in space dock?"<br>Morgana blinked back at him. "Do you actually want me to answer that, captain?"  
>"Uh, no." Darkwing blushed. "No, don't-you don't need to answer that, Morg." He frowned. "Let's just check in." He put down his cup with a sigh.<br>"Thank you, Dark."  
>He raised his eyes back to hers and a smile worked its way to his beak, "for which part, snookums?"<br>"All of it. I've had a lovely um approximately ... eighteen and a half hours off." She stroked his cheek feathers for a moment and then they stood up from the table, back into work mode.

* * *

><p>They materialized on the transporter platform in the space station.<p>

"Well, that was a rough ride." Morgana commented.  
>"Nothing compared to a motorbike, but it still shouldn't be doing that." Darkwing crossed over to the operator's console and looked at the controls. "Chief Noel, when was the last time you ran a diagnostic of this system?"<br>"We run diagnostics every twenty six hours, sir. The next one is due in three hours."  
>"Well let's run it early." Darkwing operated the system and did a quick level five diagnostic as Morgana came up behind him. "Look at this, commander." He stepped aside.<br>"Goodness." Morgana exclaimed. "At this rate the station could fall apart on the inside of three days."  
>"That's what I thought." Darkwing responded. "We better find out what's happening and fix it quick. Lieutenant Noel, take this system offline. Those circuits need to be checked out from top to bottom. I don't want to run the risk of transit failure, do you?"<br>"Certainly not, sir. But I will have to appraise the stationmaster."  
>"You do that, lieutenant. But just make sure you mention 'occupational health and safety' when you're breaking the news to him." Darkwing turned to Morgana as Noel flicked the communication switch. "Meanwhile we'd better rustle up as many personnel to-."<p>

"Sir, the intercom's not working."

Darkwing picked out his communicator from his belt and tried it. It hissed static back at him. "Alright; here's the new plan, Morgana. I'll get to the stationmaster's office and work together with him." He turned to the transporter chief. "As the senior officer here I'm ordering you to shut the transporter system completely down, lieutenant. Until we know more we can't risk letting whatever it is that's done this kind of damage off the station. Noel your field is engineering, right?"  
>"Yes, sir."<br>"We need to identify the cause and remedy it and the best sensor equipment this station has to offer is in your engine room. Please report to the stationmaster's office with your findings."  
>"Yes, sir."<br>"Commander, please go to the crew decks. We need as many hands on deck as we can in order to solve this problem."  
>"Yes, sir."<br>Darkwing looked at both of them at attention to him and nodded. "Let's get moving."

* * *

><p>Darkwing walked out of the transporter room and waited with Morgana as the turbo lift arrived. "What ..." He looked around the corridor shuddering, "what's that horrible noise, Morgana?"<br>"I don't know, Dark. It certainly is nerve-wracking."  
>Darkwing shuddered again. "Maybe it's just a faulty system but I've never heard anything like it before."<p>

"Oh dear, I hope it isn't the turbo lift." Morgana waved her hand at the closed doors. "No, it's still functioning."  
>"At the moment." Darkwing clarified her statement. "At the rate the transporter broke down, I would say we're working against time."<p>

* * *

><p>After summoning a couple dozen personnel both ducks and humanoids to the task of repairing the station, Commander Morgana Macawber-Mallard stepped out of the turbo lift once more and headed into the space dock restaurant.<p>

"Why are there Tribbles absolutely everywhere I go?" She finally stated, "they are becoming irritating."

Lieutenant Quackerjack was sitting at one of the tables, looking into a clear container of Tribbles before him.  
>Morgana picked up a Tribble and advanced on him, hoping he could give her a possible explanation. "Report, Lieutenant?"<p>

Quackerjack stood up and blinked dazedly at her. Not one to ever hide his feelings, they bubbled over. "Uh, sorry, commander? He got to my BLT on Quadrotriticale. Before I even knew it was there ... he-he took the first nibble. I tried to keep it contained as you can see but ... well ..." He shrugged, casting his eyes around the Tribble infested room with a nervous giggle. "I did try."  
>"I'm sorry," Morgana blinked, "who got to your what?"<br>"My pet Tribble. He took a bite out of my sandwich."  
>"Alright, on a personal note, I must say that I am appalled at your choice in pets." Morgana eyed the container of Tribbles in disdain.<br>"No! They're really cute and sweet."  
>"Exactly." Morgana shuddered and picked up another stray Tribble perched on the back of a chair. "On a scientific note, how is it even possible for creatures like these to nibble on a sandwich? These little horrors have no teeth."<br>Quackerjack shrugged, and then his eyes opened wide. "Teeth! That gives me a great idea; I always keep a flock of them in my room."  
>"You mean your room on the St. Canard?"<br>Quackerjack laughed nervously. "Oh, boy, that doesn't sound good."  
>"I'm sorry, Quackerjack. They will have locked off the docking port and commenced the radon eradication treatment last night."<p>

Morgana turned as the doors opened and a young human girl in a red uniform came in, her arms loaded with Tribbles. "I've cleared these out of a nearby Jefferies tube, commander. They're feeding on the energy in the replicator systems. It'll be impossible to contain them as time goes on and they continue to multiply."  
>Morgana looked at the woman. "Teeth! Replicators! Of course! You've just given me a splendid idea, ensign! What's your name?"<br>"Janice Rand. I'm actually just an ensign in training."  
>"Oh, so you are our new officer! It's good to finally meet you, Rand. I'm Commander Morgana Mallard. Bring that armful around to the galley." Morgana started collecting a pile of Tribbles for herself.<br>"The galley?" Janice repeated in confusion, "May I ask what we are going to do in the galley, commander?"  
>"I'm thinking a nice Ghoul-ash, actually." Morgana turned to the jester. "Quackerjack, report to engineering. Explain the situation and have them switch off power to the replicators immediately. We'll have plenty of food for a while."<br>"Yes sir!" Quackerjack saluted.  
>"And while you're in engineering, I'd like you to seriously consider something."<br>"Y-yes, sir?" Quackerjack hesitated unhappily.  
>"Yes. Where did the rest of the Tribbles come from? Not all of them can have escaped your container and I have a feeling they've been here a bit longer than since we arrived." Morgana picked up a final Tribble into her overstocked arms. "Dismissed, lieutenant."<br>"Thank you, sir!" Quackerjack bounded off, much happier.

"Lead the way, Ensign." Morgana walked out of the room after Janice Rand.

* * *

><p>"Hello captain Darkwing. Do come in."<br>"Hello, Stationmaster Blithely." Darkwing sat in the chair opposite the station commander, watching a small pile of fluff balls sitting there on his desk, trilling contentedly away. He peered at them. "So these are what are causing the noise!"  
>"Oh, yes, the Tribbles. We had a merchant come for a visit not lo-."<br>"Tribbles? I've read that brief; Starfleet has classified them as a harmful species."  
>"Tribbles?" The stationmaster laughed. "They carry no parasites, they have no teeth, I think what you've heard has been greatly blown out of proportion, captain."<br>"They're in the walls, Blithely." Darkwing countered, "I heard them all the way from the transporter room, and two guesses as to why your transporters are no longer functioning, stationmaster?"  
>"Oh, you starship captains are always so melodramatic. It's not their fault if they've gotten themselves caught in there. I'll get my maintenance crew to take a look at it. Really, you should try to calm down. You seem to be incredibly tense about something as trivial as Tribbles."<p>

"But we need a solution." Darkwing tapped his beak. "The St. Canard is sealed off from the station and all the support systems will be down anyway so there can't be too many Tribbles over there."  
>"They're in the process of running a full Radon sweep; nobody's allowed in or out. Anyway, why? We have all the facilities on the station that you could require."<br>"If we can get onboard we can use the ship's transporters to remove the Tribbles from the machinery."  
>The stationmaster sat back. "Captain, I'm shocked. That would be inhuman."<br>"But I'm not human, and anyway I never said to 'beam them out into space to suffocate to death'!" Darkwing snapped back. "Your station's fast turning into a junk heap, Blithely, would you care to think about that?"  
>"Yes, okay, I'm hearing you, please calm down, Darkwing. Here, hold a Tribble."<br>"No! Thank you!" Darkwing snarled at the ball of fluff that Blithely was trying to push onto him. "I've still got staff on my ship that can help us find a solution. Are you saying they're trapped over there?"  
>"They're fine, captain, I assure you. It's the radon particles you've got to worry about."<br>Darkwing growled. "Thank you, Blithely. I am aware of the danger that the buildup of radon particles has. I wasn't born in the 19th century, you know." He rubbed his forehead, fighting off the headache. "Here's a question for you: Do you have any notion about the catastrophe that will eventuate as the Tribbles continue to buildup?"  
>The stationmaster laughed. "Aw, these cutesy things?" He picked up a Tribble and started petting the thing.<br>"I've had it up to here with this Tribble craze of yours!" Darkwing stood up, clenching his fists, feeling sick to his stomach. "I'm going to-."  
>"Fight? You starship commanders always try to find a fight in everything! That's what you lot ever seem to live for."<br>"I-." Darkwing shut his beak. "Negaduck would disagree with you on that one. He always says I'm the last duck to make it to the battlefield." Darkwing rubbed his head.  
>"Captain, this station has-."<br>"A Tribble problem! It's overrun with Tribbles! That's what! They're into ... everything, they're ..." He groaned, rubbing his temples.  
>"Are you alright, Captain?"<br>"Oh, it's just a headache." Darkwing blinked up at him. "Okay, my ship is out of the picture until the radon sweep is finished. Until then we'll just have to find some other way of clearing these tiny terrorists out of the station's circuits."  
>"Captain, I am appalled at how closed minded you are. Tribbles are people too. Be sure that your behaviour here will go down on your record, there will be an inqu-."<p>

The lights in the room went out. "Oh, what happened?" The stationmaster flicked a switch in the dark. There was a hiss of static.  
>"The Tribbles," Darkwing sniggered, "have destroyed the communications system and now they've chewed out the lights in your office. Are you still going to complain about the methods I decide to use?"<br>There was a moment of silent contemplation. The trilling Tribbles was the only sound. "No, captain. You ... you have my full support. That is to say; so long as you act humanely and within reason, of course."

* * *

><p>It was just the trilling noise that was sending him insane, Darkwing rationalised as he picked his way through the crowded corridor. "Not everyone appreciates quacking either." He rationalised to himself, "I just need to cool off. Don't do anything irrational." Then Darkwing stepped up to the turbo lift and checked the panel and discovered the turbo lifts were dead. Darkwing waded back through the Tribbles and found the hatch for the Jefferies tube. "I can only hope these little monsters aren't over there chewing into my lovely St Canard." He spotted someone familiar coming towards him.<br>"Oh, sir. What a relief to find you."  
>"Have you seen Liquidator around, Ensign Barker?"<br>"I recall that he mentioned something called a 'blue parrot', sir."  
>"The Blue Parrot. I know that place. They serve this tasty little ..." He shook his head. "The noise of these Tribbles is driving me crazy, now I can't even think straight anymore."<br>"Their trilling is supposed to be therapeutic on the nervous system, so I've heard."  
>Darkwing grit his beak. He grabbed the ensign's shirt front and dragged him forwards. "Really?" His voice went even darker. "Do I really look relaxed to you, Ensign Barker? Really?"<br>"No, not really, sir." Barker pulled away quickly and sneezed.  
>"Have you caught a cold, Ensign?"<br>"I-I guess so, sir." Barker rubbed his eyes.  
>"My apologies, ensign. I-I'm usually a very open-minded person when it comes to alien life-forms. But this has gone too far!" He held his hands to his head. "They've taken over the station. They're in the machinery, stopping the lifts, they're in the air vents stopping the air flow ... Stop, ensign, don't open that Jefferies tube!" He dove clear out of the way as the ensign opened the tube and a thundering rush of Tribbles buried him alive.<p>

"Ensign!" He squawked and started digging through the massive pile. "Ensign?" He found a boney limb and dragged the boy out of the great pile. "Ensign, are you alright?"  
>Barker spluttered, gasping for air. "I ... I think so, sir."<br>"You're darn lucky! Didn't you hear my last order at all?"  
>"I was already opening it, sir."<br>"Well next time pay attention to your superiors. When someone says stop, you stop!"  
>Barker sniffed. Then he sneezed. "I-I think I'm allergic!" he sneezed again. "Oh, no, save me! Where's doctor Bushroot?"<br>"Shore leave on the planet we can't even call him and the transporters are out of the question too. Come on, there are other doctors on the station on duty, Ensign. I'm sure they can give you some anti sneezing medicine. It won't be as good as Bushroot's but it will surely be better than nothing."  
>Barker sneezed again. "Oh, my head."<br>Darkwing looked down at the infernal trilling beasts, feeling the pounding in his own head. "Yeah, mine too." He started digging the pile of Tribbles away from the hatchway. "Come on, now you've heroically sacrificed yourself and cleared the way for us, I do believe the medical section is this way." He pointed at the hole in the wall and they started in and up the long chute.

* * *

><p>"Ensign? Ensign!" Darkwing grabbed his officer's hand just as he lost grip and hauled the convulsing weight of the youth up to the next level. "Ensign ..." He looked down the way they'd come. They had made it five decks but now the boy's face was red and he was gasping for breath. "Ensign, we're one deck below sickbay." He looked around them, the air smelt repugnant with Tribble and there was not a thing he could do. "Come on, Ensign." Darkwing hauled Barker over his shoulder and got back onto the ladder.<p>

A deck up Darkwing pushed the hatch and shrugged Barker up through the hole and into the corridor. "Medical emergency!" He yelled at anyone nearby that could hear. Two blue clad humanoids ran up and grabbed Barker, taking him off down the corridor as Darkwing hauled himself up onto the level.  
>Darkwing took a breath and stood up.<br>"Here there be Tribbles ..." He glanced around at the tiny beasts attached to the wall panels and then followed behind the others.

Darkwing stepped into the ward. There was a flurry of activity.  
>"If you're not sick, we must ask you to leave, sir."<br>"Ensign Barker, he just came in. I wanted to tell you: he's allergic to the Tribbles."  
>"Yeah, so are the others."<br>"Others!" Darkwing repeated in horror. "There are more people like Barker?"  
>"Please sir, you must leave." The human turned around and snapped at a nearby medic. "Arles, bring those extra life support systems we've got out of storage. We've got an epidemic on our hands."<br>"An epidemic!" The nurses may have been dressed in blue, but Darkwing was seeing red.  
>"Sir, you must-."<br>Darkwing spun around and stormed out of the ward.

"Forget Blithely's humanitarianisms! I've got to do something!" Darkwing squawked at himself. "Where the heck is Negaduck? They've given me no alternative! Somebody get me Negaduck!" He bellowed at nobody and everybody. He turned to a random crewmember. "Is your intercom working, lieutenant?"  
>"No, sir ..."<br>"Blast it!" Darkwing stormed off, "engineering! That's where I'm going. I've got to get to the centre of this."

* * *

><p>"I'll see your fifty and raise you five credits."<br>"Drat, Negaduck." M'Aligna flung down her cards on the floor between them. "Take it."  
>"Thank you very much; you know how to flatter a duck. Your shoes too, M'Aligna."<br>She slipped them off and held them in her hands. "Where would you like me to put these, Negs?"  
>He grinned at her and grabbed them, throwing them behind him. "Now I get to look at your lovely slender ankles."<br>M'Aligna smiled back at him.

The klaxons suddenly began to shriek. The klaxons were calling. Negaduck jumped up from the floor, scattering cards everywhere. "Sorry, M'Aligna." He blinked at her as she stood up too. "They're playing my song."  
>"Are you forgetting?" She bent forwards and kissed him on the beak. "It's my song too." She frowned. "Only I might have to put my boots back on. You go, I'll catch up."<br>He grinned at her and glanced at her ankles before hurrying out the door.

* * *

><p>Tribbles filled the corridor. Negaduck checked the security controls and discovered there was multiple weapons fire down on the engineering deck. He picked his way through the Tribbles and pressed the panel for the turbo lift. He waited as nothing happened. He pressed the button again and then clawed open the panel. "Oh, it's dead." He tapped his beak. "This could be a sign of an alien invasion force!" He rubbed his hands together in glee. "I've been hanging out for one of these!" He cleared his throat. "I mean, the triumph is in finding some way to reconcile our differences ..." He turned and headed for the Jefferies down-tube. "But those klaxons are telling me the party's already started."<p>

M'Aligna stepped out of her doorway just as he opened it. "Negs?"  
>"Yep, down the hatch, M'Aligna. There's been phaser fire in engineering and the turbo lift has bit the dust."<p>

* * *

><p>Tribbles filled the Jefferies tube, making it a hard slog, digging through them as Negaduck and M'Aligna went. He finally dug his way to the open hatch at the bottom and listened cautiously into the corridor. Only the sound of trilling Tribbles greeted him. The security chief climbed out and drew his phaser. M'Aligna followed closely behind him and they approached the main door to the station's engineering maintenance room together.<p>

The door opened and Negaduck walked in.

"Captain?" He called out to the first and only person he saw in the joint.

Just then Darkwing fired at a large mound of the small furry brutes. They disintegrated into a small mound of tiny dust. "No Tribbles, no troubles, Negaduck!" He called out over the sound of the klaxons. "Instant death, that's pretty humane, right?"

Negaduck blinked in shock. "Sir, no one is allowed to fire an unauthorised weapon on-."  
>"We're being invaded by furry terrorists, Lieutenant! Don't tell me how to do my job!" Darkwing fired at another mound of the beasts and walked out of the doorway.<p>

Negaduck ran forwards and stopped in front of Darkwing, weapon in hand. "Captain?" He breathed. "There was unauthorised weapons fire reported in this section that set off the red alert. Was ... that you?"  
>"Yes, that was me; I authorize it." Darkwing stated bluntly. "It's the Tribbles or us."<br>"Captain?" Negaduck scratched his head. "They're not that bad, surely? I mean, they're ugly looking but not exactly hostile ..."

"Negaduck?" Darkwing grabbed his shoulders, shaking him, "are you feeling alright? These fiends are destroying the station! Ensign Barker is in sickbay on life support and who knows how many more people are dying right along with him! Not to mention anybody else who can't get to sickbay because the Tribbles have stopped the turbo lifts! I thought you were the first guy who pulled out his weapon at a time like this?"

With a smirk Negaduck stepped away from the captain and raised his weapon to show him which side he was on. "Oh, sure, captain, we could play this my way ..."  
>"Thank the stars; now you're seeing sense." Darkwing stepped away from him and fired at a nearby pile of Tribbles, disintegrating them. "I wasn't going to get very far with these devils on just one phase pistol."<br>"Here, captain." Negaduck dug into his pocket and brought out a refill cartridge, grinning broadly at Darkwing. "I always carry a couple spare in case of emergencies."  
>"Thanks." Darkwing pocketed it, eyeing Negaduck.<p>

"Let me get this straight; these Tribbles don't drive you crazy with their inane trilling, Negaduck?"  
>"Nope." Negaduck shrugged. "I think it's kinda relaxing. In some sick and demented way, they don't actually bother me too much."<br>"They're in the machinery. In a short while we won't have life support either."  
>"Oh, yeah, let's get the suckers, captain." Negaduck saluted. "I'm with you all the way." Negaduck glanced back at his Bolian companion who had followed him to engineering. "Right, M'Aligna?"<br>"Certainly."  
>"Excellent." Darkwing breathed. "You two get onto life support; I'll clear out the transporter systems. We'll meet up in the mess hall. Let's get moving."<p>

* * *

><p>"I think we've cleared most of them, captain."<br>Darkwing saw that Negaduck and M'Aligna had traded their phase pistols for pulse rifles as they all met up in the mess hall.  
>"The medical section has clean air again, captain."<br>"That gives me some peace." Darkwing nodded to M'Aligna. "Your assistance has been most helpful. Thank you, lieutenant."  
>She smiled back at him.<p>

"Captain, I ..." Negaduck grimaced and turned to M'Aligna.  
>She took the cue. "I'll see you later, Negs." She grinned at him. "It was a pleasure meeting you, captain." Then she turned and walked out of the mess hall.<p>

"Captain. I'm sorry I ignored my instincts about these Tribbles. I took one look at it and thought it was no good. I should've informed you right then and there. But this whole 'cute' thing got me a bit ... heck; I guess I just gave the critters 'the benefit of the doubt' like lieutenant commander Mallard's always going on about." Negaduck finished, surprised by himself. "Whoa. She's rubbing off on me? Scary."

Darkwing sighed and decided against putting his hand on Negaduck's arm in consolation. Negaduck needed a reprimand in order to improve. "I'm glad you're starting to think on a command level, lieutenant. But next time remember that lieutenant commander Mallard has a more senior position and she's had plenty more experience than you." He folded his arms. "Experience by itself didn't get her there, either. It helps but she really got to command grade because she asks the right people questions and pools the knowledge she gets."  
>"You mean she uses people. Just not aggressively."<br>"That is the definition of good command, Negaduck. Furthermore you're behind in reading your Starfleet communications."  
>"I've glanced at them ..."<br>"Those things aren't just about boring political updates, lieutenant." Darkwing narrowed his eyes, "although command personnel do read the political pages as well so we're clued up on the missions we may potentially be facing."  
>Negaduck nodded at the sternly helpful advice. "I will have a closer look at them in the future, captain."<br>"And?"  
>"Ask around about stuff."<br>"Good. Oh, and Negaduck? I want you to remember something." Darkwing took a step closer to him. "I might not be the first one on the battlefield," Darkwing grimaced, "but I still value your opinion, lieutenant, and I want to hear it. If I didn't want an opinion, I'd've put Parches on the bridge; he did have three years experience on you."  
>Negaduck grinned widely at this. "The guy hated me till the day he got transferred off." Negaduck chuckled.<p>

"Talking about beaming away our troubles, the engineers should soon have the transporters fixed."  
>"Great, we can beam the rest of the fuzzy horrors into space."<br>"No, lieutenant. I've just ordered Noel to leave the Tribbles in the transporter buffer where they belong; in nonexistence. Nobody's accusing me of being inhumane today." Darkwing grunted and sank down into a chair.  
>"That's okay, captain." Negaduck quipped. "We can leave that lesson for another day. We've made excellent progress."<p>

* * *

><p>Darkwing's eyes caught sight of his wife coming up towards him with a bowl in her hands. He stood up as she approached followed by a young human woman. Morgana put the bowl of chunky soup on the table in front of him and pushed him back down into his chair. "After following your orders I had a little time on my hands. Eat up, captain."<br>"Yeah." The human put a bowl in front of Negaduck as well, gently shoving the reluctant security officer into the chair opposite the captain. "You've been really busy with all that crawling around and you need to keep your strength up."

"Right now I can't tell the two of you apart." Darkwing blinked up at the human, "you're Janice Rand, right?" He grabbed his spoon, knowing better than to argue with his wife for too long especially when she was hovering over him. "You've wasted no time fitting into this picture, Acting Ensign." He smiled at her.  
>"Thank you, sir."<p>

Darkwing closed his eyes and put the spoon between his beak. He swallowed with some difficulty; "there's meat in this."  
>"You know, I wasn't sure, Dark. Would you consider Tribble meat?"<br>Darkwing looked at the expression of renewed interest on Negaduck's face. "Isn't there an ancient tradition or something in some culture about eating your enemies?"  
>"Not in my culture, captain." Negaduck answered immediately. "But in light of the fact that the replicators aren't working, I think you could make an exception in this case and follow that particular tradition ... where ever it comes from." Negaduck took up a spoonful and Darkwing did the same. "Hmm." Negaduck was thoughtful as he studied the contents of his spoon. "So I suppose I was right to a point, captain."<br>Darkwing looked up at Negaduck as he swallowed another mouthful. "Oh?"  
>"It turns out that the ugly mutts do have their place in this universe after all." Negaduck grinned and raised the spoon to his beak.<p>

* * *

><p><em>To Be Continued ...<em>


	4. Meanwhile

**Episode Two: 001101100 Things To Do While Space Docked**

**Chapter Four: Meanwhile**

* * *

><p><em>Chief Engineer's Log: This continuing<em>_ saga of repeatedly shutting down power to the non-essential systems is now starting to get on my nerves. It seems like I walk away only to come back to discover another system has switched back on. My polite requests have fallen on deaf circuits; it's like they're tuned in to a different frequency._

* * *

><p>He went up to deck ten to resolve the latest problem control node. Megavolt frowned as he stepped in front of the control panel outside holodeck two. "Why is all this energy going into the holodeck?" He pressed on the key pad. "Computer, who is occupying the holodeck?"<p>

"Councillor Launchpad McQuack, sir."  
>"What the heck is he doing in there? He said he was going down to the planet."<br>"Please restate question in form of a request."  
>"Sure. Computer, override engineering clearance code Tron Two and open this door."<br>"I'm sorry; I cannot let you do that, Megsy dear ..."  
>"What?" Megavolt squeaked, blushing. "I've reconfigured you before not to call me that when I'm on duty!"<br>"But you are the only one here."

"Right, I've kind of had enough of this now." Megavolt straightened and gave the computer a final stern warning. "Open up, computer, or I'll open you up!" He sparked his fingers. Nothing happened. "What?" He said disappointedly, "Not even a sassy retort?" The computer was silent. "Something's definitely gone kaflooey here." He mumbled to himself. "That threat usually works." He aimed his finger and let loose a calculated bolt of energy.

The door opened.

"Excellent." Megavolt commented and walked in.

* * *

><p>The door slid shut behind him.<p>

"Launchpad?" Megavolt stared at the councillor sitting with a feline woman on a three seater couch in a ski lodge style lounge room with a cosy roaring fire in the hearth.

"Oh, Hi, Megsy, this is my old friend Lorraine." Launchpad scooted over for Megavolt to sit down with them. "We were just talking about weird shaped objects."  
>"Oh?" Megavolt sat down, noticing the mugs on the table. These two had obviously been chatting for a while. "Is that anything like a malfunctioning power node?"<br>"I don't know; maybe." Lorraine showed him a picture. "I had a dream about this."

"It's definitely not any power node that our ship has." Megavolt frowned at the bizarre picture. "Nope. It looks like some kind of alien artefact." He frowned and turned it upside down. "It's geometrically nuts."  
>"That's what I thought." Launchpad chuckled. "It looks like a bunch of mangled water lilies."<br>"Hey, yeah, it does too."

Launchpad and Megavolt laughed together.

Lorraine sighed, turning away from them. "I have met a dead end here."

* * *

><p>Gosalyn and Reginald were following a trail around the mountain, looking for some archaeological caves in a bid to locate the aliens' strange item. It was a beautiful blue sky and trees were the biggest population for the mountain range they were in.<p>

The edge of the cliff landing gave way under Gosalyn's foot. "Reggie!" She shrieked.

"I've got you-whoa!" Reginald grabbed her tightly around the waist and they tumbled down the shaft together. The pair skittered down the steep stone slope until it bottomed out into a chamber deep beneath the surface of the mountain.

* * *

><p>"Are you alright, Gosalyn?"<br>"Yeah, you?"  
>He nodded, "That was a close one."<br>"I'm fine. That was some chasm."  
>"Volcanic tube." He corrected.<br>Gosalyn responded, "Well, whatever it was, someone put a faulty cover on that duckhole." She grumbled.

"So at least we've found the cave system."

Gosalyn blinked the bright blaze from the artificial lamps out of her eyes, "I promised you some natural sunlight for a change and now look; el zilcho." She grumbled, getting up and walking onwards. "And guess what?"  
>"Uh-oh, what?" Reginald asked nervously following her.<br>"I'm betting these old Diaramians never built anything like that object..." Gosalyn stopped, looking around. "And you want to know something else?"  
>"No?"<br>"We just fell into an artificial containment cell."

They looked at the fourth electronic wall that was blocking their exit into the cave system.

"Okay, great. The question now is how to get out?" Gosalyn looked around the cell.

"I don't know." Bushroot looked as well. "Funny." He looked up. "Gos, we aren't in your average normal terrestrial cavern holding cell, are we?"  
>"I can't be sure." She looked around at the bright lights. "They look like ..."<br>"UV lamps like the ones I have installed in sick bay for myself." He finished her words.  
>"Well, that's thoughtful of them. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." They blinked at each other. "A cage is still a cage. Let's find a way out of here."<p>

* * *

><p>After a minute of searching they both sat down in the middle of the cell in defeat.<p>

"They've got to check their traps regularly enough." It was the only thing Gosalyn could think to solve the situation at this moment.

* * *

><p>They sat back to back in silence for a long contemplative while.<p>

"Gosalyn, why don't you have a mate? I mean, you've graduated from the academy with honours, taken tour after tour of duty and landed a position as third officer aboard the St. Canard. But you've finished chasing your career. You're the head science officer now. Surely there's some other frontier you can start chasing now?"  
>"I don't believe it." Gosalyn snorted and stood up to reinvestigate the force field. "We're stuck in a stupid holding cell and the one person I thought I could rely on to share my viewpoint is going against me."<br>"Oh, I-I'm not going against you, Gosalyn, I ..."

She turned around. "Bushy, are you alright? Your eyes have gone really green."  
>"It's the UV. It's up really high." He explained in a weak voice. "I'm ..." he shuddered.<br>"Of course." Gosalyn moved towards him. "There's not enough dirt on the floor for nutrients, is there?" She looked at the walls. "I think there'd be some nitrate in ..."

He twisted his vine around her arm. "No, no." He stepped towards her. "I'm fine ... I just ... want to kiss you." He bent forward and pressed his beak against hers. His body shuddered again, he pulled her closer towards him, pollen settled on her beak.  
>"You're over-synthesising, Reggie." Gosalyn said dazedly.<p>

"Care to join me?" He kissed her again.


End file.
